In some situations, small loads can be carried within the cabin of a vehicle or within a trunk of the vehicle. Many types of vehicles (e.g., pick-up trucks, sport utility vehicles (SUVs), and other large vehicles) may be specifically designed to transport larger loads. However, some loads may be much too large, bulky, or heavy to be transported within the regular loading areas of these vehicles. Thus, these larger loads normally cannot be transported unless they are carried on a trailer that can be towed behind the vehicle.
In order to enable towing, trailer hitches are attached to the frame (or bumper) of a towing vehicle. Various types of towing components (such as ball mount brackets, trailer balls, couplers, trailers, safety chains, etc.) can be removably connected to these trailer hitches as needed for towing different types of loads. For example, a hitch mount, which may be configured for mounting a trailer ball, may be connected to the trailer hitch using a hitch pin. The hitch mount, which may be made of stainless steel, may be inserted into a tow hitch receiver of the trailer hitch and then twisted such that a spring-loaded locking pin extends into a groove to prevent the hitch mount from rotating farther, and hence locking the hitch mount to the tow hitch receiver. Of course, when the vehicle is not towing a load, the towing components can be disconnected from the receiver tube of the trailer hitch, such as by removing the spring-loaded locking pin from the groove to allow the hitch mount to be rotated to a point where it can be removed from the receiver tube.
However, when the towing equipment is disconnected from the trailer hitch, the receiver tube of the trailer hitch is exposed. Often, with the receiver tube exposed, the cavity of the receiver tube may become filled with undesirable objects. For example, when a vehicle is used on a construction site or on dirt roads, the receiver tube may become filled with dirt or mud. The vehicle may also be exposed to ice and snow, which can accumulate in the receiver tube. Also, it is possible that insects, such as hornets, wasps, ants, etc., or small animals or birds may build nests inside the receiver tubes. Thus, the design of these receiver tubes may lead to the undesirable accumulation of various matter or objects that would need to be removed before the trailer hitch can be used for its intended purpose of towing a load.
There is therefore a need to prevent this accumulation of undesirable matter inside the receiver tube of a trailer hitch.